Secrets of Successful Globalization

What’s the Latest Development?

Despite what we believe, globalization is not the de-facto state of our world, says business professor Pankaj Ghemawat: “First-generation immigrants represent only 3% of the world’s population and the percentage of the world’s population comprised of immigrants is the same as it was in 1910. … Some pre-crisis measures of cross-border capital flows/stocks are actually comparable to earlier peaks more than 100 years ago—and thanks to the crisis, are now lower. … Less than 20% of the bits transmitted on the Internet cross national borders.”

What’s the Big Idea?

Ghemawat gives seven idea for successful globalization. Among them are: Respect cultural differences, the way McDonalds sells lamb burgers in India; not all countries are equal in a globalized world—the further away your business goes from home, the more difficult it will be; regions remain important global players, take the E.U. for example, where trade barriers are erected; companies should exploit arbitrage strategies such as going public abroad to tap foreign capital wells; exploit downturns in foreign markets to expand your business.